Tag: EasyLanguage

Since it became a brokerage back in 1982, TradeStation has taken great pride of its role as one of the industry leaders in trader technology. It offers one of the best trading platforms available anywhere. It now has over 30 years of experience behind it, and it continues to improve and grow on into 2014.

Tools & Platforms

TradeStation has a desktop platform as its flagship product. It is its main core focus. Trading on the web was introduced as far back as 2013, but its current use is mainly for placing trades and managing positions and orders whenever the desktop application is out of reach.

There are multi-monitor traders who really appreciate the flexibility that TradeStation offers, as it supports multiple monitors enabling each monitor to maintain an open desktop workstation.

TradeStation has the tools to cater to nearly any type of professional investor. That includes institutions like hedge funds. Over 40 years of their historical data is available for performing equity trading, involving charting and studies. The backtesting done via Portfolio Maestro along with the customized scanning of market opportunities, only scratch the surface on all of the functionality they can offer.

The charting enables investors to get into some deep analysis and to customize indicators using multiple options. This is something that only competitors like the TD Ameritrade‘s ‘thinkorswim’ platform is able to compete with. Over 200 indicators and case studies are also available for inclusion. Each one of these is easily reworked or adjusted to fit with a trader’s exact specifications.

The option traders have by no means been forgotten. This is due to OptionStation Pro (a tool that is built into the platform). Scanning and analyzing potential trades has become a breeze, with traders able to view the traditional 2D and also the 3D P&L (profit and loss) charts. This is a benefit that is exclusive to TradeStation only. While having the 3D views is a nice addition, ultimately, they are more like good eye candy.

TradeStation also has a few other tools in its arsenal, like Radar Screen Matrix, Walk-Forward Optimizer, Scanner, and more.

One of the last crucial parts of TradeStations tools is its own proprietary coding language (EasyLanguage), that empowers traders to run wildly with indicator and trade customizations in their strategies. Clients are able to share/sell their work through the TradeStation TradingAPP Store, which was formerly known as the Strategy Network. There you can find FREE products as well as some that may run you around $50 a month, while others can run as high as $500 a month.

Over the long term, their TradingApp store expects to be something worth keeping an eye on. It was not formally launched until late in 2013. As of January of 2014, a lot of the apps still don’t have reviews listed. It is difficult to gauge the popularity because TradeStation doesn’t display the number of clients who are using each specific app. One thing you can count on though, is that these apps were not meant for new investors. They’ve been built specifically for those investors who are experienced and seasoned, and those institutional traders who know and understand all the ins and outs of the marketplace.